Hit by a Bus
by Dattebayo Devon
Summary: A bump on the head, buzzing in the brain, awakening something which is meant to slumber. And as it grows stronger, and stronger, the feared becomes the inevitable. Warning: This fanfiction will get darker and darker and darker. HIATUS.
1. It Begins

**AN: Hmm … this took a while for us to do. . It was originally a one-shot, but then FOXY (glares at said fox) decided to pretty much extend it by waaay too many words, so we had to take each section that begins with an italicized sentence and make it its own chapter so you poor readers cannot scream at the teeny, tiny scrollbar on the right. Want a horror story? She extended a hundred and four of my words into nearly 2,000 in one of the future chapters. TECHNICALLY it's supposed to be one fanfiction! The sections are technically not supposed to be their own chapters so please read it like it's all one thing! (Foxy: she complains and rants now, but she likes the extensions I made. ;) ). So we had to divvy it up. Also, this is situated sometime right before (spoiler) Anri being the Slasher. Y'all can expect the second chapter next … hmm … sometime next week (depends on when we can both revise the second bit together).**

**We're sorry y'all, we're trying to get everything done but college is quite painful. Pleeeaase continue to bear with us! Also, technically there are more than two main characters to this story … but, as you all know, only two can be put in the search thing. So we put in the first two main-ish characters that came into play.**

**DISCLAIMER: We do not in any way own the characters/scenes/… oh you know the drill I'm sure.**

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**Hit by a Bus**

**A Durarara! Fanfiction by Kitty & Foxy**

**Chapter One: It Begins**

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_-Ryuugamine Mikado was hit by a bus.-_

"You're certain that he's all right? There're no problems?"

"Yes. He only needed minor surgery and so far there haven't been any complications." The doctor replied. "Don't worry; there's a nurse keeping an eye on this ward at all times, and we plan to keep him in the hospital for a few weeks to make sure he'll be alright."

Masaomi sighed in relief and thanked the doctor as he turned to go back into Mikado's room. _I should be used to the sight of this stupid hospital by now … but I'm only getting sicker of it. _Anri was already sitting near Mikado's bedside, looking confused and a little disturbed, but mostly unsure of how to react to this situation. Masaomi didn't blame her; he didn't think anyone would really know how to react in situations that no one expects to happen. Seeing a bus run over their best friend was certainly on the "unexpected list."

She looked up at Masaomi as he sat down next to her. "Is he … going to be okay?"

"Yeah, the doctor says he's going to have to say in the hospital for a while but he'll be able to walk out with everything attached." Masaomi tried his best to force a smile, but the smile faulted right after. He looked over at Mikado, who was still lying in the hospital bed, hooked up to the monitors in an unconscious state.

As Masaomi finally got the chance to sit down without worrying – at least, not worrying too much – what felt like happened in no time was finally starting to unwind in his mind, the events from over the past few hours starting to settle down in place. It really was a blessing that Mikado hadn't died when the bus rammed through the red light and through the crosswalk filled with people … Mikado was one of the unlucky four people that the bus struck, Masaomi and Anri having barely avoided it. As soon as the bus managed to stop, onlookers flooded the scene, some calling their cell phones for help. Masaomi and Anri ran over to Mikado, making sure that he was alive as he was knocked unconscious. Then came the ambulances and reporters. The two of them had been allowed in the ambulance with Mikado to the hospital, as there was room and the hospital wasn't too far away. Mikado arrived at the hospital with two cracked ribs, a broken leg with a large cut in it, a gash on his head (which the doctors called severe head trauma), and other various injuries and bruises that were too small to count. The doctors performed surgery to get one of the cracked ribs away from a few of his vital organs and stitched his leg and head up. Masaomi wasn't sure if Mikado looked better as he was now or as he was when he came in.

Now that everything seemed fine – or at least, under control – Masaomi started to feel tired. He pulled out his cell phone to look at the time only to realize that it was nearly 2 AM, meaning that the accident had actually occurred about eight hours ago, despite what it felt like to him._ Well, I'm definitely skipping school tomorrow … although it's technically today, isn't it?_ _Whatever. I'm skipping it._

He turned to Anri and offered to take her home, but she got up on her own and insisted she'd be fine. _She probably wants to be alone right now, but that isn't exactly safe on the streets at this time of night … _nonetheless, she parted on her own, leaving her cell phone number with the nurse so they could call her when there was some improvement. Masaomi did the same, telling them that he'd come visit again after he got in some sleep and a shower. They had also called Mikado's parents some time back and they were supposed to come either tomorrow or the day after (depending on when they could catch the next flight to Tokyo).

As he left the hospital's entrance into the night, relief flooded his system, helping him to calm down. _It's okay. Mikado's going to be fine, and after a few weeks we'll all be back to normal, we can forget the bus incident and go on with our lives._


	2. It Buzzes

**AN: Foxy speaking. Technically I should be studying math right now (for my final exam …) but you should feel lucky that I have pushed that aside and I worked on this to post it. And then don't expect to hear from me in a while 'cause I have a lot of exams to take. And I should be studying math. 'Cause math is my greatest weakness. Notes for this chapter? Hmmm … it's awkward to be around another person's parents when that person is either incapacitated or unavailable (speaking from ample experience). I'm sorry you're not really going to see any action until chapter three or four. Enjoy!**

**DISCLAIMER: We do not in any way own the characters/scenes/… oh you know the drill I'm sure.**

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**Hit by a Bus**

**A Durarara! Fanfiction by Kitty & Foxy**

**Chapter Two: It Buzzes**

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_-Ryuugamine Mikado was stable.-_

Masaomi woke up grudgingly the next morning, rolling over in his bed and squinting at the clock across his room. For someone who had trouble falling asleep that night, he slept soundly past his alarm and past noon. And the only reason he woke up was because his cell phone was ringing, and it had probably been ringing for quite a while at different times, as he could faintly recall ringing in his dreams … although, that could've been his alarm clock too …

He grabbed around for his cell phone on the night stand, attempting to make his mind start working even though he still felt dead tired. _What happened yesterday …? Oh yeah, that's right!_ Feeling more alert as the scenes of last night came flooding into his mind, he quickly opened and answered his cell phone, hoping it might be the hospital with good news. "Hello?"

"K-Kida-kun?"

_Aaah, it's the sweet angelic voice of Anri! And now I've got her number!_ But Masaomi decided to be a little more serious than what his inner demons speculated. He swung himself out of bed, feet touching the cold floor, and got up to head to his dresser. "Anri-chan! I just got up and I'm going to head to the hospital soon; do you want to meet up to go there together?"

"A-actually, I'm already at the hospital … Ryuugamine-kun woke up a few hours ago …"

Masaomi froze. "He already woke up?" _I thought the hospital was going to call me! But I probably slept through their call … I've got to hurry then!_

"Yes, but h-he's still somewhat … somewhat dazed. The nurses gave him a lot of painkillers …"

_That just makes him more fun to tease!_ "That's alright; I'll be there as soon as I can. Oh, can he talk?"

"Yes, but not a whole lot …"

"Can I talk to him for a moment please?"

"S-sure."

He could hear the phone being shuffled around and Anri saying something, most likely telling Mikado who was on the phone. Once the shuffling seemed to stop, Masaomi spoke up again as he was changing his clothes. "Oooy, Mikado! How are you feeling?"

After an awkwardly long pause, an answer came. "Can't feel anythin' right now …"

Masaomi wanted to laugh at how slurred and sluggish his friend sounded, but he decided he'd do that when he actually got there. Right now, he felt thrilled that Mikado seemed okay, despite what happened yesterday. "Great! You remember picking a fight with that heavy boxer guy over the sleazy hooker last night?"Masaomi joked. He knew he probably shouldn't mess with his friend when his friend was on a lot of painkillers, but it was hard to resist.

"… I don't remember anything …"

_That must be the head trauma that's talking. Or the shock. Or whatever the doctors were saying last night. _"Well then we'll tell you the story when you get there! Oh, and Mi-ka-do, I'm going to come very slowly, so you better use your time wisely to get yourself a date with one of the nurses or Anri-chan!"

"…" After some silence, Masaomi heard the phone shut off on the other end. _Ah, so he's not really willing to put up with jokes right now ... or maybe, since he's on all those painkillers, he can't comprehend everything I'm saying … Oh well, I'll get some more jokes in when I get there! He could probably use them._ And with that in mind, he finished getting dressed, grabbed his cell phone and some other paraphernalia, and headed out the door towards the hospital with his breakfast in hand, a smile on his face.

Before he crossed into the hospital's territory, Masaomi stood at the sidewalk, looking up at the ominous structure before him. He felt the wind passing him by as he continued to watch the building in wordless contemplation. To say he held disdain for hospitals would be correct, but to say he held disdain for this particular hospital would be a drastic understatement. What he didn't get right now is _why_ fate decided that Mikado had to be sent to the same hospital that Saki was in … it was just torturing him. He was afraid of going through the entrance because once he made it inside, he'd have to make the heart-wrenching decision of who he should visit – and who he had the _right_ to visit. _I think fate is trying to pull me apart. What was that example …? Where you're tied to two different horses and they're both running in different directions?_ He couldn't help but inwardly smile at that image, and that small image gave him the courage to start walking towards the entrance.

As he entered through the automatic sliding doors, the wind gushing in behind him with a _woooosh!_, he made his decision. He had come here to see Mikado. He wasn't ready to see Saki … at least, not yet. So he went up to only the second floor and headed down the hallway to the right, assuming that Mikado was in the same room he was last night. And, just as it was hours ago, Mikado was lying in the hospital bed, with Anri beside him. Grinning, he hopped inside the room, exclaiming "How are you feeling, Mikado?"

There was no answer. Masaomi blinked, taking a closer look at his friend. _He's unconscious again? Damn it!_

"Ryuugamine-kun fell asleep on the phone with you …" Anri quietly answered Masaomi's thoughts. "H-he doesn't have a lot of energy."

_I can tell. _"I didn't think I was _that _boring on the phone," Masaomi grumbled, plopping himself down in the other visitor's chair, staring at his unconscious friend once again. _I'm getting the déjà vu feeling again … that's no surprise, it did happen last night._ Except this time around, he was more bored than he was worried. "Soo how long until he wakes up again?"

Anri shrugged, unsure of how to answer. "He fades in and out a lot … the doctor said it's probably the painkillers."

Masaomi nodded, leaning back in his chair. "Darn, I should've brought something to do …" _Even schoolwork would be more entertaining than this … oh crap I forgot to call the school and tell them I'd be out! _He tensed up in his chair, looking over at Anri. "Uuuh, did you call the school and tell them you'd be out?"

Anri seemed a little surprised by the random question, but nodded. "Y-yes, and they said as long as I bring a note signed by the doctor, they'd excuse me … I-I told them that you'd probably be out t-too …"

_Ah, saved by the beautiful Anri-chan! _Masaomi let out a sigh of relief. "Thanks, I forgot to. Don't let me forget to get a note from the doctor either." _Otherwise the teacher will think that I'm making up an excuse, even though this one just so happens NOT to be an excuse … of course, I have Anri and, although he's unconscious right now, Mikado as my witnesses that I was not playing hookie, and the teachers trust them 'cause they don't look like punks like I do. Hmm, I wonder how many days I could get off by visiting Mikado … not too many, and not all at once. I should go to school tomorrow and a few days after, then I can probably slip out again without being thought a liar. How long is Mikado going to be here anyways? A few weeks or months? I guess it depends on how severe his injuries really are, and how long he's going to sleep. At least he didn't end up as bad as one of the other people that got ran over. I wonder what happened to that person? Anyways, he'd better wake up soon. I'm not going to spend the entire day here when he's unconscious and gets to sleep while I get to stay here and watch him sleep. Of course, I should probably leave before Anri-chan, that way he can get some time with her … assuming he comes out of la-la land. And when he finally does get out of this damn hospital, he can have a cool, true pick up line! That he got hit by a bus and lived! Not that I'm jealous. I wouldn't want to be the one on all the painkillers. But it's still pretty cool, and I'm sure he could get a looooot of the female sex to listen to –_

"…Shut up, Masaomi …" A grumbled reply came after a few moments of silence, startling both Masaomi and Anri out of their own thoughts and back into the real world. The monitor that Mikado was hooked up to was racing faster, indicating he was awake.

_Huh, he must've heard my voice earlier. _"Mikado! Are you going to stay awake this time? Do you remember anything from last night now?"

Mikado's eyes lazily glanced over at his two friends, but at least his eyes were willing to work. The numb parts of his body refused to move under threat of pain, but the rest of his body felt too happy with the painkillers to want to move. "No."

"No, I'm not going to stay awake, or no, I don't remember anything?"

"My head's buzzing …" Mikado stated, moving his head a little to the side. It felt like mold was growing on his brain, or something along those lines.

"You're on a lot of drugs, pal. You're experiencing what druggies feel." Masaomi grinned.

Anri, however, gave a more descriptive answer when she saw Mikado send a threatening glance at the other boy that clearly read: _I'm not in the mood to be messed with_. "T-the doctors put you on a lot of painkillers, remember? You a-also received head trauma last night …"

"…What … happened?" Mikado started to feel somewhat tired again, turning his head back around to face up at the ceiling. _I can't really think anything straight right now …_

"Well, the truth is, you got hit by a bus last night." Masaomi folded his arms, nodding. "You and some other people, anyways. The bus ran through the crosswalk, we don't know why yet. Just do us a favor and don't get mowed down like that again, okay?"

_I was ran over …?_

"They said you're going to be in the hospital for a while, at l-least a few weeks …"

"Don't worry buddy, we'll make sure you don't fall too far behind in school. It'd be a shame if you had to repeat the grade and we went on ahead of you."

However, sometime during the two's talking, Mikado had fallen back asleep, the monitor he was hooked up to clearly signifying that he was asleep again.

"Oh come on, Mikado, I'm not that boring," Masaomi moaned, slumping back into his chair again. He glanced back over at Anri. "How often does he go in an out?"

"S-sometimes for a few minutes, but it's usually for a few hours …" Anri answered. She also felt a bit out of place next to their unconscious friend. Time might be easily passing for Mikado, but for those waiting next to him, it was weird to have to wait for their friend to wake up.

About half an hour passed, and Masaomi had finally been bored enough to move after they had watched the nurse check Mikado's vitals and go. He stood up, stretching out his arms and cracking his knuckles and bones. "Anri-chan, I'm going to go get something to eat. Want me to bring back anything?"

Anri nodded with a small smile, and thanked Masaomi as he left the room to head towards the cafeteria downstairs. _This has to be the lamest thing to do when missing school … waiting and waiting in a hospital for your friend to stop falling asleep at your jokes. _He frowned, but kept heading down, passing the front desk as he saw the cafeteria's sign up ahead.

"It couldn't be … Kida-san?"

Masaomi turned at hearing his name being said by an unfamiliar female voice. _Huh?_ However, he soon saw two adults approaching him, he guessed it had been the woman who had said it. _They look familiar …_

"Kida Masaomi, right? The little boy Mikado used to play with?" The older woman asked.

_Holy shit they're Mikado's parents!_ But of course, Masaomi tried to hide his surprise. Even more, the little unconscious voice in his mind was saying _don't try to hit on his mother. That won't go very well. _"Yeah, you're his parents, right?"

The father nodded with a smile. "You've changed since we last saw you. Dyed your hair, did you? I bet your old man didn't like that."

"No, he didn't." Masaomi chuckled nervously. _Seriously, parents are really awkward to be around … especially friends' parents._

"Did you visit Mikado here? Is he alright?" The mother asked worriedly, obviously distressed. "We came up as soon as we got the call."

"Yeah, he wakes up at times but he's on a lot of painkillers so he keeps falling back asleep." Masaomi nodded, trying his best to make the situation not as bad as it seemed. "The doctors think he'll be fine after a few weeks."

The mother sighed in relief, but still she would be distressed until she saw her son for herself. "Which floor is he on?"

"The second; turn right down the hall and it's the fourth room down on your right." Masaomi said, pointing towards the staircase.

"Go ahead dear, I'll check us in and see if we can talk to the doctors ourselves." The father said, and so the mother headed towards the staircase and vanished. The father turned to Masaomi, smiling. "It scared us when we got that phone call … a bus really ran him down?"

"Yeah, kind of. It ran through a crosswalk and Mikado got hit, but not as badly as some of the other people." Masaomi said, trying to force the images of his freshly-ran-over friend back down in his mind. "I'll be back in a moment, I told my classmate up there with him that I'd get some food."

"Ah, here," Masaomi blinked when Mr. Ryuugamine produced his wallet and gave him some cash. "If you don't mind picking us up something too. We haven't eaten since we've gotten the phone call."

Masaomi nodded. _Score some good points with the parents, and they won't tell your kid that you're a bad influence. _That wasn't something invented up on the spot, either. It was something he learned when he first started playing with Mikado. Let's just say that his parent's impression of Masaomi at the start wasn't all that favorable … "Sure. I'll see you in a few minutes."  
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Anri hadn't been expecting a middle-aged woman to show up at the doorway. She was a little surprised to see the woman, while the woman was a little surprised to see Anri as well. _Is she … Ryuugamine's mother?_ Anri vaguely wondered.

"Are you a friend of Mikado's too?" The woman smiled, relaxing once she saw her son in the bed. He might be bandaged up, but he looked safe enough and that was enough to help calm her.

"H-hai." Anri stood up and politely bowed to the woman. "I-it's nice to meet you, I'm Sonohara Anri."

"Ryuugamine Yoko. I'm his mother." She bowed back to the girl, who was earning favorable marks in her mental book (as all mothers make with anyone who associates with their children). "It's nice to know he's got friends willing to skip school to see him in the hospital." She smiled, taking the empty seat next to Anri. "You aren't his girlfriend, by any chance?" Mikado was going to get a mother's wrath if he'd 'neglected' to tell his mother about such an important thing.

"N-no, I'm just a friend." Anri reddened a little. She had to admit, she felt uncomfortable being with his mother (what friend isn't in this kind of situation?). However, his mother did most of the talking thereafter, mostly about a story of Mikado when he was younger and broke his arm trying to climb on top of the roof (after Masaomi egged him on, apparently). Soon after the story, Mikado's father and Masaomi came back up, Masaomi with food for everyone and the father with a clipboard full of notes he'd borrowed from the doctors to look at exactly what their son was receiving and what injuries he had. It looked like Mikado was going to be alright in the end, and everyone was relieved to know it. After about an hour, though, Masaomi and Anri started to feel a little out of place with Mikado's parents, and since Mikado wasn't waking up anytime soon enough, the two of them left after obtaining doctor's notes so that the parents could be alone with him for a while.

"His parents are nice," Anri stated as she left the hospital with Masaomi.

"Yeah, as long as you get on their good side they'll stay that way." Masaomi chuckled. "I think the mother still hasn't forgiven me for some things I put Mikado through … like making him bike out of town in the middle of the night with me, or convincing him to walk across a pond when it was frozen over …"

Anri smiled at those images, and waved as she departed back towards her own home. Masaomi stared back at the hospital in the mid-day now, watching it for a few silent minutes, then went on his way home as well. _I'll come back when Mikado can stay awake long enough to listen to my jokes._


	3. It Stirs

**AN: Foxy Speaking. Yay! I studied my math and I took the test and I think I did well … except for this problem. Can anyone find f(x) when you have f'(x) = 4f(x), with f(0) = 10? Any math inclined people, anyone? (Kitty: Why would anyone want to solve a math problem for you on a fanfiction page?) Ah, well, I was so excited by the fact I think I did well that I went into hyper mode and got this third chapter done and 90% of Gradually done (the only part that is left is for Kitty to write Shinra … I hate writing Shinra for some reason). If you still don't know what's going on in this fanfiction, you definitely will NEXT chapter. Okay then! Please read and review. Seriously, review. Even though these chapters are short. I really LOVE reviews. They motivate me beyond anything else in this world.  
****Foxy to Herself: Happy Birthday to me, Happy Birthday to me! Even though I have a Final Exam at eight in the morning, Happy Birthday to me! (Nineteen and still in love with Anime)**

**DISCLAIMER: We do not in any way own the characters/scenes/… oh you know the drill I'm sure.**

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**Hit by a Bus**

**A Durarara! Fanfiction by Kitty & Foxy**

**Chapter Three: It Stirs**

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_-Ryuugamine Mikado was getting better.-_

"Are you sick of being in the hospital yet, Mikado?" Masaomi grinned, poking his friend in the arm. His hand was promptly batted away as Mikado frowned again.

"Stop asking me that, you already know the answer."

About a week had passed, and Mikado was finally able to stay conscious long enough to have a decent conversation with visitors. Of course, the first thing Mikado did was chase his parents away, insisting that he'd be fine and that nothing like this would happen again. They, however, insisted that they'd be checking up on him in a few weeks and that he'd better stay out of trouble until then.

"Great. So what do you want to do while I'm here?"

"I don't know. What did you bring?"

"Homework!" Masaomi cheered as he slid off his bag and pulled out a handful of textbooks and lose papers. "We can't let you fall too far behind in school. Although, I bet you like it better on the days that Anri-chan gets to bring you your homework~"

Mikado reddened, once again swatting (and failing to hit) at Masaomi. "Will you please just take something serious for once?"

"Oh come on, even your _mother_ approves of Anri. You should be happy. Isn't it supposed to be a rare thing for a woman and her mother-in-law to get along?"

"I said be serious!"

"I am! You two are going to make a cute couple some day – of course, that'll probably be six years from now when you finally work up the courage to ask her out." Masaomi sighed, putting the textbooks and homework down on the seat next to him. "So, do you want to start with history or with math?"

"…Neither."

"Wrong! We'll start with math." Masaomi pulled out the math textbooks and started flipping through the pages. However, he was having trouble remembering what page he was supposed to teach Mikado … _err, what did we learn today? Oh shit, it was math I slept through … well, let's see … we learned about this yesterday, so maybe it's this? But we skip around a lot in this stupid textbook … uuh …_

"Masaomi-kun."

_Oh crap I really have no idea what we're doing … maybe I'll just tell him to do something, and then the teacher can think that he did the wrong chapter instead of me forgetting what it was …_

"Masaomi-kun!"

Masaomi snapped out of his thoughts at the sound of his voice being called. "What?" He asked Mikado.

"…You don't remember what the homework is, do you?"

Masaomi laughed sheepishly. "Ahahah, it's that obvious, isn't it? Oh well, at least I know what we're on for history!" He switched the textbooks, and this time, opened it to the chapter that the class was supposedly on. "Want me to read from it like it's a bedtime story again?"

"NO." Mikado outstretched his arm nearest to Masaomi. "Just give it to me so I can read."

"The doctors told you not to strain yourself. Therefore, I must read it to you."

"I can strain my eyes for an hour, but if you don't give it to me, I'll end up straining my ribs and can you guess who'll be in trouble?"

Masaomi hesitated for a moment, contemplating what was the best course of action. In the end, he decided that it would probably be better to let Mikado read to himself than risk being banned from visiting him, so he gave him the textbook and sighed aloud, bored now that Mikado was occupied and he wasn't. _He's gotten snappy … but I guess sitting in a hospital for a week and knowing you're going to be in there longer will make anyone grouchy._ "So … what do I get to do?"

"Go find something to do other than annoy me."

"… But what's there to do in a _hospital_? Those are technically my textbooks, I can't leave here without them!" _There's a test tomorrow, I kind of need the history one back … I mean, I could try to just wing the test, but that's not the smartest idea._

"Then I'll finish up the history chapter and you can leave the math one with me for tonight," Mikado replied, scratching his head. "Ah, you can ask the nurse if you can get my house keys … that way you can bring my textbooks here and there won't be a problem."

"Ah, that'd be great!" Masaomi sighed in relief. "Then I don't have to hang around you when you go into boring mode. I bet you don't do that with Anri-chan, you'd let _her _read them aloud to you."

Mikado glared daggers at his friend's pout. "Please just let me read this in peace? And don't fail your test tomorrow; I'm not going to be your excuse this time."

"Alright alright …" Masaomi leaned back in his chair, but then blinked. "Wait, how'd you know that I have a test tomorrow?"

His friend held a contemplative look for a moment, then shrugged. "Lucky guess? I mean, you want the textbooks back so badly that I guessed that was the answer … You never voluntarily want to study, either, and otherwise you'd just leave them here."

"You know me too well."

"It's hard not to. You're too open with things." Mikado turned back to the textbook, clearly not wanting to argue anymore. In fact, he was starting to feel tired, and he knew he should get the work done so he wouldn't end up falling asleep on Masaomi waiting on him (again), or otherwise his friend would get another excuse to tell his teachers why he didn't have time to study on his own. However, as he kept reading through the pages (and ignoring Masaomi's talking to himself in the chair beside him), his vision started to blur and his head felt tired. _Damn it … I'm going to fall asleep again, aren't I?_

"Miikado, are you still there?"

Mikado didn't feel enough strength to answer his friend's question, so instead he just let the textbook fall to his side as he relaxed. _Sorry, looks like the drugs got to me again_.

"Hey, at least tell me how long you're going to be out so I can at le …" However, by that point, Mikado couldn't hear his friend well enough to discern what he was saying. Ever since the accident that he couldn't remember (despite how he tried), he'd been put on enough drugs that he kept falling asleep at random times. He understood that getting rest and not feeling the pain would help him get better as soon as possible, but it was annoying to fade in and out and not remember long gaps of sleeping. He was sure it was annoying his "company" when it came too, but there wasn't a whole lot he could do about it. His body was tired and his brain felt like there was mold or something growing on it. He kept trying to scratch at where he'd received the concussion because it felt different all the time – sometimes light, sometimes heavy, sometimes fuzzy and other times it felt like it was working too well. The doctors told him it was expected that he'd feel odd sensations up there, especially with all of his injuries. Usually one of the nurses or his friends would tell him to stop scratching and that would be that. He'd also scratch at his leg or his other wounds, which was also promptly stopped if caught. _This is annoying … somehow I doubt Masaomi's going to stick around long enough._

_Sheesh, you sleep more than Sleeping Beauty did. You don't look right for the part either._

Even though he felt like he was halfway between consciousness and deep sleep, a strange, familiar voice intruded in his mind. _What was that …?_ It caused him to become slightly more alert, but not alert enough to wake him up. The pills that the nurse had given him a few hours were taking over him enough that he didn't care at that point. Before he knew it, he'd fallen asleep once more.  
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"Come on, Mikado, wake up already." Masaomi knew that this would probably happen, but he couldn't spend the whole day here waiting for his friend to wake up. He had homework, which he could do here, but he also had some chores back at home that he needed to take care of.

Ten minutes had passed, and Mikado seemed to be too deep in sleep to bother. _Ah, well, I'll just take this book here and _… Masaomi reached over his friend, sneakily taking the textbook out of his friend's hands and into his own. _I'll just do my own studying here for a while. Maybe he'll wake up in time._

About an hour later, Mikado started to stir again. Masaomi was too busy glaring at all of the historical text in his book to notice, growing evermore frustrated by the terms that he just realized he needed memorized for the test the next day. _Who the hell cares about all of this? It's not like we're still battling each other with swords and committing seppuku. Even if we were we wouldn't need to know about this emperor doing this and that …_

"Sooorrry, Masaaomi-kun …" Came a slurred, quiet voice.

Masaomi looked up, smiling. "You fell asleep on me again. You really need to stop doing that," he tsk-tsked, as if lecturing Mikado for being childish. "At least you didn't take as long as last time. I think an hour is the new record!"

"…And you – you need to stop making lame jokes." Mikado frowned, still trying to gain full awareness of his surroundings. He found being on drugs insufferable. At least he'd be off them in a few weeks and apparently in another he could try standing again. He'd just be glad when he could get up to use the bathroom independently again.

"Which lame joke are you referring to this time?"

_He's not even denying that they're lame. _"They're all lame. Just cut it out." He felt more alert by now and his words were less slurred, but he could still feel the buzz of the drugs in his mind and body. _I really hate these things._ "You're actually studying on your own?" He noted the open textbook in Masaomi's hands.

"Come on, I do some serious things when you're not looking." Masaomi frowned. "How about I leave these here with you, and just take your textbooks with me tomorrow? I can exchange them when I come back tomorrow too."

"You'll have to get my keys …"

"No problem, I'll talk to the nurse." Masaomi stood up, stretching and setting the textbooks and Mikado's set of homework next to his friend on a chair, pushing it up closer to the bed. "Anything else you want me to bring from home?"

"Err … my laptop, I guess … and any mail I've gotten …" Mikado wasn't sure what Masaomi should bring with him. Mikado had so few personal belongings at his apartment (he'd left most of them at home in Saitama) that there wasn't really anything_ to_ bring.

"I'll bring what I see fit and can carry to school with me." Masaomi nodded, knowing Mikado probably couldn't think straight enough to list everything. "Okay, I'll see you tomorrow then!" He waved, quickly walking out of the room to go to the nurses' desk partway down the hallway.

"…Bye."  
*

Mikado missed Masaomi the next day, since he'd apparently slept from noon to nearly seven in the evening. But Masaomi had exchanged the textbooks and had asked a nurse to set down a laptop-bed table (since he couldn't really set anything on his chest or legs at the moment) and his laptop, cell phone, and a quickly scribbled note from Masaomi ("Don't sleep too much or you'll end up a vampire!") were settled on it.

Mikado was happy enough when he found that the charger was already set up with the laptop as well. He'd been growing bored in the hospital. It was especially boring since he didn't even remember the incident which had led to his stay. Now, he could get back in touch with his online friends, and see if he could find any news that wasn't by word-of-mouth.

When he felt certain that the nurses weren't coming back anytime soon (at least for a few hours), he logged into the Dollar's chat room, scanning over the messages that had been left over the past week. Surprisingly, some were from members wondering what the bus accident was (or witnesses of it). There were more concerns voiced about the growing number of Slasher attacks, as well as other events. _Life goes on whether I'm conscious for it or not,_ Mikado frowned. Somehow, he didn't like the idea of being left out of the excitement. Even if he'd been momentarily involved in part of it.

A chat room appeared in a new screen, and his gaze drifted over to it. He logged in.

-Tanako Taro has Logged In-

_Kanra: It seems Tanako Taro-san's back!  
__Setton: Really? Are you alright? You've been gone for quite a while.  
__Kanra: Yes, it has been rather dull without you on.  
__Kanra: You've missed quite a bit of exciting news too!_

Mikado smiled as he looked at the two online. He knew who they both were in real life, and of course, they were far more interesting than they appeared to be online. _Just goes to say that you can't really know someone online like you can know them in real life._ But the anonymity of the online world invited a sense of excitement that made Mikado want to create Dollars in the first place.

_Tanako Taro: I know, I'm sorry.  
__Tanako Taro: I'm in the hospital, actually. Bad accident.  
__Setton: !  
__Kanra: !  
__Setton: What happened? Was it gang-related? Did someone target you?  
__Tanako Taro: No, it was a normal accident … well, I don't know if you could call it "normal."  
__Tanako Taro: But I wasn't targeted. I should be out in a few weeks.  
__Setton: Well, that's good to hear. I hope you get out sooner than that, Tanako Taro-san._

-Private Chat-

_Kanra: It was the bus incident, wasn't it?  
__Tanako Taro: How'd you know?  
__Kanra: I recognized you getting carried off on the news. Nasty set of injuries you've got there._

Mikado scratched at his head again, smiling sheepishly to himself.

_Tanako Taro: Yeah, but I should be out soon._

-Public Chat-

_Setton: Well, I have to go now, there's a job I have to do.  
__Setton: Tanako Taro-san, if you need a doctor to check up on you later when you're out of the hospital, I know one you can visit.  
__Tanako Taro: Thanks, I'll keep that in mind._

-Setton has Left the Chat-

_Kanra: I think I'll be going now too. Bye Bye~!_

-Kanra has Left the Chat-  
-Tanako Taro has Left the Chat-

Mikado closed the tab and started looking around on other news sites to see what had been going on in the days he was sleeping from the world. After about an hour, he started to feel drowsy again, so he closed his laptop and lay in the bed, resting and thinking about what was going to happen next.

_It'll probably all go back to being normal … at least, for a little while._ And with that, he dozed off, ignoring the buzzing feeling that persisted in his head as it all faded to black.


	4. It Awakes

**AN:** WELCOME TO THE FIRST DAY OF MARCH MAYHEM! I wasn't expecting anyone to actually solve the math problem, but thanks (Guess I did get it wrong … oh well)! Yeah, you should figure out what's going on in this chapter. Let me know of any errors. :D We'd appreciate reviews! Reviews are what will drive the March Mayhem! (For information on what it is, please visit our page.)

**Special Notice:** Whoever submits the best one-shot idea _ever_ (of your own creativity and uniqueness, please nothing insanely cliché) by March 15th, 2011, will receive a one-shot of said idea on March 31st, 2011. This one-shot can be of anything (angst, romance, smut, horror, cuteness, pairing / non-pairing, etc.) so long as it's creative, it's game. Your request to us needs to be thought-out, along with any little "bullet points" you want us to note or write. The one-shot will be pushed into the 7,000 – 10,000 word range, unless the requester wants less. We'll pick the one that appeals to the both of us (if you aren't picked, no worries – we still might ask to do it). We will give partial credit to the requester. Any further questions? Just add them into your request when you message us. Multiple submissions are allowed.

**DISCLAIMER:** We do not in any way own the characters/scenes/… oh you know the drill I'm sure.

* * *

**Hit by a Bus**

**A Durarara! Fanfiction by Kitty & Foxy**

**Chapter Four: It Awakes**

* * *

_-Ryuugamine Mikado was experiencing Extra Sensory Perception.-_

"… Masaomi-kun, why are you here?"

"I'm visiting you, of course!" Came the joyful reply from the blond sitting next to him.

"But you should be in school."

"You don't want me to visit?" Masaomi frowned, attempting to look pathetic as he started to physically harass (poke) his friend. "I'm hurt. Here I am, doing what all good friends do, and you don't want me here."

Mikado didn't really believe the reasoning as he batted his friend's hands away. Something was telling him otherwise. "… You're here to skip an exam, aren't you?"

His friend appeared taken aback. "What makes you say that?"

"It's written all over you. You really can't hide things from me." Mikado grumbled.

"I'm that easy to read?" Masaomi sighed, feeling defeated.

"What're you going to do when I'm out in two weeks?"

"I'll just go back to my old excuses. They might be lamer, but they work." Masaomi teased. "So what do you want to do?"

Mikado folded his arms, relaxing back into his propped-up pillow. "What did you bring?"

"Let me look." He pulled his bag into his lap, starting to dig around. "School supplies, lunch, a deck of cards, my cell phone, and my little black book of all the girls' numbers and measurements that I've managed to get."

"…" Mikado guessed that his friend was joking about the last part. "Let's go with the cards."

In reality, Mikado didn't feel like doing much today. He'd been kept up pretty late last night with all these tests and equipment he didn't quite understand that was used to make sure his leg was healing properly, and having it jabbed numerous times and trying not to yelp when it hit a bad area or if he moved it wrong was tiring. He'd been counting on getting some sleep, but leave it to his best friend to foil his "boring" plans.

They started off trying to play various card games. But, with each game, they'd either lose all the cards on the floor or Masaomi would really, really stink at the game. _It's not even becoming funny anymore … is he letting me win?_ The frustrated mark told him otherwise. _No … it's just my luck then._

They started playing a game where they had to draw cards and occasionally steal them from the other's hand (Mikado believed that Masaomi was making up the rules as they went along), and Masaomi grew ever more frustrated, game after game, as Mikado kept picking "winning" cards from his hand. After a few more rounds, Masaomi frowned and said:

"Mikado … I think you're reading my mind."

Mikado blinked, and the two sat in an awkward silence until Mikado – yes, Mikado – started laughing. "W-w-what?" That was clearly an exaggerated claim.

"No, really! How else are you able to guess what freaking cards I have in my hand?" Masaomi started shuffling all the cards again, making interesting gestures and faces along with his next words. "You've probably awakened some sort of ESP or mind reading or something ultra cool like that when the bus ran you over!"

"… I think you're the one that needs your head checked, Masaomi-kun." Mikado had ceased laughing; he didn't like that his friend was taking this seriously. "You're just easy to predict; you're open with yourself."

"Oh, really then? We're going to keep doing this." Masaomi pulled several cards out from the newly shuffled deck, and didn't look at them yet. "What are they?"

"… Masaomi … there's no way I'd know that." He replied dryly.

"Come on, if it's not true, then at least humor me so we have something to do for the next hour. Really, really, really try to think about it!" Masaomi argued.

Mikado shot his friend a glare, but sighed at the determined expression. _Fine … I'll humor him._ He kept himself in deep thought for a moment, but he wasn't really getting much. Just the normal things that usually appeared in his own mind when he tried thinking in silence.

"… I'm not getting anything," he reported. _… Is he finished?_

The frown told him no. "Okay, I'm going to look at the cards, and think really hard about what they are. You try to read my mind."

"… Now you're just being ridiculous –"

"Just humor me," Masaomi grinned, picking up the cards and staring hard at them, making sure that Mikado couldn't see them from where he was. "Okay, think for a while."

Rolling his eyes, and taking a deep breath, he started to let himself think again. No, he was still just getting the normal clutter that was in his mind … he started thinking about what the cards might be, but of course, he doubted what he was thinking.

"Read the cards right to left." Masaomi interrupted, still looking at his own four cards, speaking them aloud in his own mind but trying not to give off any clues.

"Uuuh …" Mikado decided that he'd let whatever came first to his mind, he'd say. After all … it _was_ just pure guesswork, right? "Three of clubs … Queen of hearts … Jack of clubs … and a five of diamonds?"

The wide-eyed fish face that Mikado received was _not_ comforting.

… Definitely not.

"Y-y-you got them _all!_" Masaomi turned his hand to show the cards, leaving a somewhat fish-faced Mikado as well. "Seriously, there's something going on here!"

"ESP isn't real, Masaomi!" Mikado bit his lip, but he was clearly concerned. _How is this happening?_

"Then let's try this again." Masaomi reshuffled the cards, this time drawing out five. They went through the process again, only this time, Mikado scored four out of five.

"See? I get stuff wrong. It's just guesswork," Mikado attempted to defend himself, but he knew full well that his defense was not going to convince Masaomi.

"But you're getting most of this right! That's statistically improbable! Maybe even impossible!"

… _I think those are the biggest math terms I've ever heard him use._ "I can't read your mind!"

"Oh yeah?" Determination splayed across his visage. "Try me."

"H-huh?"

"Read my mind."

"… But you're not holding cards …"

"I said my mind, not the cards through my mind. What am I thinking of right now?"

Mikado didn't want to do this anymore. "No."

"Come on, if you don't get it right, then I'll stop! But if you get it three times in a row, you have to listen to me."

… Mikado decided that three tries was safe. "Fine, I'll do this … but leave me alone if I don't get it."

"Okay." Came the cheery response. Masaomi knew Mikado wouldn't lie because Masaomi KNEW how to tell Mikado was lying. At least, it was fairly easy.

After a few minutes of what appeared to be concentration, Mikado turned to Masaomi, with a slight blush on his face. "… I really hope that's just my imagination."

Masaomi gave a little chuckle, sending off the devil's eyes. "What's in 'my' imagination?"

"… I … I'm not saying." Mikado grew a little redder. What he was envisioning was certainly, well, Masaomi like … it had to do with girls … in strange costumes … he thought so, anyways. _I really somehow hope that IS his mind and not mine …_

"That's not how it works!" Masaomi whined. "You've gotta say it out loud!"

"N-no!" Mikado protested, glaring at his friend. "J-just stop being hormonal!"

"Ha! You did know what I was thinking~" Came the chimed reply. But, when Mikado reached over and started twisting his fingers in directions they weren't meant to twist, Masaomi backed off. "Oww oww, alright, alright! Sheesh, being in bed rest has actually made you stronger …" he mumbled. "Alright, I'll think of something more generic now." Masaomi went back to concentrating, and Mikado (though he took a few more moments to glare) started to relax. A few minutes passed, and soon he was getting something else …

"You're … hungry?"

"Yeah!" Masaomi grinned again, clearly growing excited. "What was I thinking of?"

"… I don't know." Mikado admitted; all he got was the idea that Masaomi was hungry. Not much else. _Though, it could be from his stomach growling about an hour ago …_

"Hahah, that's two, Mikado!" Masaomi held up two fingers to prove his point. "Ready for three?"

"…No."

Too late. Masaomi was concentrating away again.

Mikado sighed, going back to "trying" to read his friend's mind. _He's not going to give up, even if I get the next one right, is he? Well then, I guess I'll just lie … whatever comes to my mind next, I'm just going to say something generic … like dog … or cat … or … or … _The image that he just got …

Mikado flushed exponentially more than he had the first time. "M-M-Masaomi!" This time, he grabbed Masaomi's bag on the seat near him and threw it at the now-laughing blond.

"Hahah, I know you got _that_ one, y-you can't deny it!" Masaomi laughed, bringing his knees up on the chair and clutching his stomach.

"D-don't do that!"

"But I knew you'd lie about what you saw if I didn't think up something that would make you react like that!" Masaomi defended, still laughing. "I can make her more erotic if you wa–"

Masaomi soon found that his textbook – which, by the way, had been lying open in Mikado's lap the entire time – lost some of the pages from an embarrassed-and-angry-friend grip. He quickly stopped laughing. "H-hey, the teachers don't like it when those things get messed up!"

"Then. Don't. Do that." Came the growl.

"Fine. I probably deserved that. But you can't deny that this proves you _can_ read minds," Masaomi grinned again, taking his textbook and its pages away from Mikado so no future incidents could take place.

Mikado hesitated. _He's right … maybe not the reading part, but I did just guess things way too coincidentally … _he decided that now he could worry.

"You just wait till others find out! You're going to be very popular with the ladies~" Masaomi elbowed his friend.

"H-hey, don't go telling people about this!" Mikado panicked, clearly still trying to sort out the truth of all the "tests" they just did.

"Why not? It's awesome!" Masaomi grinned, pumping his fist in the air. "You can read minds! Maybe not too clearly, but you can!"

"I-I'm not even sure that I can! A-a-and people might think I'm crazy!" He wasn't sure how _he_ thought about this yet; he needed time to think. Time to figure out if it was real, or some sort of problem with his brain that he should let the doctors know about …

"Nah, crazy is when you're talking to the dead person in the corner," as if to prove a point that Mikado could not see the dead, he pointed to a corner in the room. "But this people can verify, y'know!"

"I-I-I don't want p-people coming h-here for that reason though!" Mikado grabbed Masaomi's arm. "I … I really need to consider telling the doctors … that something weird's going on …"

"Then they'd test you for ESP too, right?" Masaomi grinned.

"I had head trauma. _Head trauma._ The bus did a number on me. There might be something wrong or m-maybe I'm bleeding into my brain or – or –"

Mikado stopped when Masaomi grasped his shoulder tightly, becoming serious. "Mikado, don't freak out over this, or you really will pop something in your head."

"B-b-but -!"

"Supposedly these things happen a lot. Someone's got a hidden talent that doesn't show up in most people 'cause it's dormant. Maybe you've awakened yours or something," Masaomi grinned. "Just because a freaky sixth-sense seems to be showing up in you right after an accident doesn't make it _bad _or mean that your brain's gonna explode everywhere."

Mikado didn't appear convinced.

"Alright, I won't tell anyone for now," he sighed, pulling his arm out of the grip. "But I want you to keep testing this 'fore you tell the doctors anything! They might just start putting you in a Looney bin if you say you can but you can't prove it all the time."  
*

… _Can I really read minds?_ Mikado remained in his own deep thoughts, wondering if it could be true. Masaomi had left an hour ago, of course, after doing the homework and trying out a few more tests on Mikado's "psychic ability."

It would explain the _coincidences …_ but in reality, he had no proof. Did he? The only person he'd been able to "read" so far was Masaomi. And Masaomi was already fairly easy to read; after all, the blond was an audible mime. _It probably isn't something to be concerned about too much … I mean, I've known Masaomi-kun for a long time … it makes sense I'd know what he's thinking part of the time. Maybe I'm just picking up on more of it because there isn't much else to do in here … _that could be it. But, he also decided he needed to worry. _I need to see if I can do "this" with other people … if that's the case … then Masaomi might have a point. Or I might just be going insane._

He hoped not. It could mean a number of things, really; like he wasn't right in the head. Then and there, he started to creep himself out with such thoughts. Maybe he was going nuts and he didn't realize it. Like, maybe, he thought he was acting sane, and everything was making logic to him, but maybe he was really mental on the outside and had suffered severe brain damage from the accident or something along those lines. Or, better yet, maybe he was just imagining things. Maybe he was in some sort of deep coma, and he was just dreaming things. That would actually make sense; he'd be able to predict things because he'd be "asleep," and his unconscious would be making up the stories as they went along, and then his "conscious" would just pick up on those rhythms and –

_Ack, I need to stop thinking about this!_ Mikado hit his head – gently, as he didn't want to induce any more trauma that might be there – against his pillow, trying to shake it off. He knew if he thought too far, he just might convince himself of one of those scenarios. And, while the idea of being in a coma or insane had slight appeal in its never getting boring, he didn't really want to experience either. It came along the same lines of logic that he wanted to experience the thrill of being in a mass of people, but he didn't really want to experience a physical fight _in_ that mass of people. He didn't need the extremities to get a thrill right off the bat.

Deciding that he needed to take his mind off of things, he logged into his laptop (conveniently nearby) and started surfing around, looking for news, articles, theories, anything. Eventually, he logged into the Dollars website, to see what was going on. If anything.

-Tanako Taro has Logged In-

_Tanako Taro: Konbanwa.  
__Setton: Ah, good evening, Taro-san.  
__Tanako Taro: Ah, is Kanra-san here too?  
__Kanra: Of course I am~!  
__Kanra: How are you feeling, Tanako Taro?  
__Tanako Taro: Alright, I guess …  
__Setton: So long as you're getting better, that's what's important._

Mikado swallowed, deciding he needed to ask now before Celty got off.

-Private Chat-

_Tanako Taro: Uuum, Celty-san, I'd like to talk to you for a moment.  
__Tanako Taro: I'm not sure I want Kanra-san hearing about this._

That part was true; he may trust Izaya more than most people, but he knew better than to state unconfirmed things to him.

_Setton: What is it?  
__Tanako Taro: You lost your memories when you lost your head, right?  
__Setton: Yes, that is true.  
__Setton: Why do you ask?  
__Tanako Taro: Did you believe what you were, what you could do, when you first woke up without your memories?  
__Setton: Hmm … I guess I might have doubted myself, but I was more preoccupied with finding out what happened.  
__Setton: Why the interest?  
__Tanako Taro: Some strange things have been happening the past few days.  
__Tanako Taro: I can't tell if I'm going crazy, if my friend's crazy, if it's something I should be concerned about, or if I should accept it as truth.  
__Setton: Why don't you start from the beginning?  
__Setton: I'm not quite sure what you're saying.  
__Tanako Taro: Sorry, I don't think I should tell anyone just yet … I'd like to figure out if it's real before it gets out.  
__Setton: Well, whatever it is, be sure to let me know, alright?  
__Tanako Taro: I will._

-Public Chat-

_Kanra: Oooy! Where did you two go?  
__Setton: Ah, sorry, I had something to do.  
__Kanra: At least tell me that then ..._

The chat room continued on for a little longer, but soon the other two had things to do, and Mikado soon found himself alone in it. Deciding he needed rest, and feeling a little comforted after the chat that had nothing to do with the freaky things that were going on, he set the laptop aside and relaxed, taking a deep breath and staring at the incredibly plain white ceiling in the quasi darkness.

_Life would certainly be more interesting …_

…_If I really could read minds._


End file.
